This was in mid-May, when the Seattle Mariners made their first trip to Toronto. At SkyDome, as everywhere else the Mariners have gone this season, a large contingent of Asian fans turned out.

Of those, many pressed close to the railing by the visitors' dugout, desperately hoping to catch a glimpse of Japanese star Ichiro Suzuki during batting practice.

Ichiro -- no last name required -- was doing his pregame work, scurrying here and there, doing his best to ignore the autograph hounds for a few more minutes. Lampkin, the Mariners' backup catcher, stood by the bat rack, watching the scene unfold, watching the aforementioned Japanese fan become increasingly agitated.

"This guy was leaning over the railing and he was almost hyperventilating because he was so close," Lampkin said last week. "Ichiro came in to put his bats away, and this guy was like `Ichiro-san! Ichiro-san! Ichiro-san! Ichiro-san! Ichiro-san! Ichiro-san!' And he was sweating.

"I'm like, `Ichiro, sign the guy's ball.' I thought the guy was going to die. His heart was beating real fast."

Finally, Ichiro signed.

Said Lampkin: "I've never seen anything like that."

Lampkin may be a journeyman catcher with his sixth organization, but the 1998 St. Louis Cardinals were one of those teams. Lampkin had a front-row seat for Mark McGwire's 70-homer season, the year that completed baseball's post-strike renaissance.

If Lampkin says he has never seen anything like the furor that surrounds Ichiro, that should give you an indication of the traveling rock show the Mariners have become. Make no mistake, Ichiro has touched a nerve on these shores. Lampkin thinks he knows the reason.

"People can relate to the guy," Lampkin said. "He's not some supernatural freak like McGwire. He's a normal guy walking down the street. He just uses the ability that God gave him. I think that's what people are drawn to."

Ichiro is listed at 5 foot 9 and 160 pounds. His body is more akin to a gymnast's or a sprinter's than a weightlifter's, which runs counter to the baseball environment. Shirtless, his ribs are visible, his biceps unimpressive.

"He's not an overwhelming 6-foot-6, 250-pound giant that you would expect to come out and dominate," Lampkin said. "He's smaller. He uses the tools that he has -- his natural tools, his speed and hand-eye coordination -- to get all these hits, which makes it even more amazing."

A HIT WITH THE FANS

Ichiro didn't only lead the fan balloting for tonight's all-star game at Seattle's Safeco Field, he set a record with 3.3 million votes.

Back home in Japan, Ichiro is considered a modern-day Elvis. Winner of seven batting titles in the Japanese Pacific League, he ranks with home run king Sadaharu Oh among the most revered players in the nation's history.

Ichiro's decision last winter to jump to the major leagues after nine seasons with the Orix Blue Wave did not brand him a traitor. If anything, it increased his popularity and elevated him to a level of Jackie Robinson-style significance.

Until this season, no Japanese position player had appeared in a major-league game.

If Ichiro failed, a nation would fail. If Ichiro thrived, well, that was the dream, wasn't it?

Entering the all-star break of his debut season in North America, Ichiro has answered all the questions. Not only has he assimilated successfully to a new continent, but the Mariners' right fielder and leadoff hitter has turned the sport on its collective ear.

Ichiro has spent much of the season near the top of the American League batting race. A career .353 hitter in Japan, he is batting .347 entering the break. His longest stretch without a hit: seven at-bats.

He has 28 stolen bases, vying for the major-league lead. In little more than a half-season, he is being called the best defensive right fielder in the game. His routes to fly balls are impeccable, his arm is strong and accurate.

Just ask Oakland Athletics outfielder Terrence Long, whom Ichiro threw out at third with a 200-foot laser beam in April. That throw has become legendary, to the point where opponents rarely test Ichiro's arm any longer.

Best of all, the Mariners, despite the off-season loss of Alex Rodriguez, have by far the best record in baseball. They are on pace to eclipse the 1998 Yankees, winners of 114 regular-season games, as the winningest team in AL history.

Because schedules were set well before Opening Day, the Mariners have not been shown in the Fox Saturday afternoon slot or on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball. Instead, Ichiro has become the phenomenon who launched a million satellite-dish sales.